Magnolia Tribune
On the Menu: Carne Asada & Margaritas
Inspired by a recent trip to Texas, here is a complete Tex Mex meal featuring tender carne asada, pillowy homemade flour tortillas, a spicy roasted salsa tatemada, and a margarita for good measure. Muy bueno. Enjoy.
After reflections on smoking succulent pork butt, the next logical mountain to climb might have been the smoked brisket. It’s day is coming, but alas, today is not that day. Instead, a recent trip to Texas inspired a different pursuit in the “test kitchen.”
My bride, a Mississippi girl who grew up in Texas, first introduced me to real “Tex Mex.” While Mississippi’s run of the mill Mexican food is fine, in my humble estimation, it does not live up to the quality and flavors found in the Lonestar state.
As I sat down to a sizzling platter of fajitas at Ninfa’s in Houston, it got me thinking: could you reproduce this? Having had the question, I needed the answer.
I settled on trying to produce three basic components of quality Tex Mex: carne asada (marinated steak), homemade flour tortillas, and salsa tatemada (roasted salsa). For good measure, I threw in some pollo asada and salsa roja…and also some margaritas.
Carne Asada
The secret to genuinely good carne asada is the right cut of meat, the right marinade, and a smoking hot grill. Answering the cut question is simple. Outer skirt steak is what you want. It has a strong beef profile and plenty of flavorful fat that melts into the meat as it cooks. Its craggy texture holds the marinade and allows it penetrate the meat. It’s tender, but with the right amount of bite. Just a wonderful cut.
There are a wide variation of marinade recipes for carne asada. Mine ended up being a melding of the most highly regarded recipes on the interweb. Here it goes:
- 1 Cup of Orange Juice
- Juice of 3 Limes
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon of Red Wine Vinegar
- 2 Ancho Chiles
- 2 Serrano Chiles
- 2 Chipotles in Adobo Sauce
- 3 Cloves of Garlic
- 1 Small Bunch of Cilantro
- 1 Tablespoon of Kosher Salt
- 1 Tablespoon of Adobo Powder
- 1 Tablespoon of Ancho Powder
- 1 Tablespoon of Cumin
- 1 Tablespoon of Mexican Oregano
Yes, that is a lot of stuff. You can certainly cut out some of the dry seasonings or get by with just one kind of pepper if it feels like too much of a headache to track stuff down.
And yes, the list includes soy sauce. No, you are not making Mongolian beef. You won’t taste the soy sauce. It adds sodium, but more importantly, it does magic on the texture of the beef, breaking it down and making it more tender. Trust me.
Put all the ingredients in a blender and, um, blend. Pour over your meat. Let the steak marinade between 4-6 hours. Pull the steak out of the marinade and season gently with salt and pepper. There will already be quite a bit of flavor imbued into the steak from the marinade.
Now, get a grill extremely hot. I put lump charcoal nearly to the grate level of my Green Egg and get it glowing. Skirt steak cooks quickly. So the challenge is to get a char on the outside while not overcooking the inside. On a properly heated grill, you will do 2-3 minutes per side of the skirt steak, get a nice char, and have a medium internal temp.
Let it rest for a few minutes. Now, this is important: you want to slice the steak against the grain. If you cut it with the grain, you will be missing out.
I should mention that I split the marinade and poured half over some chicken breasts we had on hand to make pollo asado. It was almost as delicious as the steak. Almost.
If you’re going to throw your steak onto one of the fluffy flour tortillas below, I just dice some white onion and cilantro and douse it with some salsa. That said, your taco, your rules.
Flour Tortillas
Now, I know street tacos are made with corn tortillas. Corn tortillas are delicious. But there is something about a good hot flour tortilla that speaks to me. It says “eat me.” In most Mississippi Mexican restaurants flour tortillas are thin, lifeless, and relatively flavorless. The ones in the store are even worse.
In Tex Mex, tortillas are thicker and chewier. They have texture and are more than a delivery vehicle for meat and goodies. They can be their own course with a little mantequilla (butter). Making something that closely resembles the Texas product was surprisingly easy. My family, including my discerning Texas-raised wife, devoured these. Here’s what you need:
- 4 Cups of All Purpose Flour
- 3 Teaspoons of Salt
- 2 Teaspoons of Baking Powder
- Half a Cup of Vegetable Shortening or Lard
- 2 Tablespoons of Vegetable Oil
- 1.5 Cups of Warm Milk
If you are looking at the shortening and vegetable oil thinking, “that doesn’t sound healthy,” you’re probably right. But fat is a major component of any tortilla recipe. It’s what allows a tortilla to fold without breaking. It gives chew and flavor.
Add all of your ingredients, except for the milk, to a mixing bowl. Kneed them together so that shortening mixes with the flour. Heat your milk in the microwave for 45 seconds or so. It doesn’t need to be scalding, just warm. Slowly add your milk to the mixture and begin working it into the flour. You will kneed for 3-5 minutes to form it into a slick ball.
Cover it with a damp dishcloth and let it proof for 20-25 minutes. Uncover it and divide the dough ball into 16 equally sized balls. Cover those and let them proof for another 10 minutes. Now get sprinkle both sides of the dough balls with flour and flatten them into a 4 inch circle. Rub a rolling pin down with some flour and roll out your 4 inch circles into 8 inch circles.
Do not worry if they are not perfectly round. Weird shapes make them more authentic, or at least that’s what I told my family. Now, get a cast iron skillet piping hot. Toss the tortillas into the dry skillet (no more fat) for 30-40 seconds per side. They should start to bubble as they cook and when you flip, you’ll notice browned spots on the surface.
Stack up your tortillas and wrap in a dish towel to keep warm. All 16 of the tortillas I made were gone within 2 hours in our four-person family.
Salsa Tatemada
Most Mexican restaurants in Mississippi serve a version of “salsa roja” that loosely approximates tomato puree. There isn’t a lot of flavor, texture, or heat. It’s serviceable, but not great in my opinion. Tex Mex salsa, particularly that served in south Texas is different.
Salsa tatemada basically just means “roasted salsa.” It brings a lot of flavor to the party and is often served warm. Here’s what you need and how you make it:
- Six Roma Tomatoes
- 2-3 Serrano Chile Peppers (To Taste)
- 2 Chipotles in Adobo Sauce
- 1 Small Yellow Onion
- 5 Cloves of Garlic
- 1 Small Bunch of Cilantro
- 1 Tablespoon of White Vinegar
- Juice of 1-2 Limes (To Taste)
- Half Tablespoon of Kosher Salt (To Taste)
Turn your oven broiler on high. Cut your tomatoes and onion in quarters. Remove the stems from serranos and cut them in half lengthwise. Some people advise to remove the seeds and white vein that run down peppers. That’s where the heat of the peppers is. I like the heat or I’d just buy a bell pepper. I don’t remove the stems. Peel the garlic cloves. Now place your tomatoes, onion, serranos, and garlic on a baking pain and broil the heck out of them. They need to blister and char. Black exterior is good.
Once charred, take your vegetables out of oven and add them to a blender along with all of the remaining ingredients. Pulse to blend. I like to leave some texture in the veggies so I stop short of puree. Now, put in a pot and cook for another 10 minutes or so. The mixture will be thick because of the roasting process on the vegetables. Add a cup of water and stir. Taste to see if you need to add more salt. Serve. (It will be better the next day).
Alternatively, you can make a salsa roja (basic table salsa) with largely the same ingredients. The only difference is that you won’t roast your vegetables before blending and won’t add the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Blend all of your ingredients together and then bring to a simmer on the stove for 20 minutes. Remove from stove and refrigerate for two hours before eating. This will allow the flavors to meld.
Note: If you’re making the non-roasted variety (salsa roja), when you first blend the fresh ingredients, it will look kind of pink. Don’t be turned off by this. It will “redden” up as it cooks.
Second Note: If the serranos in either recipe are too hot for you, you can reduce the number or substitute jalapenos. I recommend against it. Serranos’ heat profile is one of the stars of the salsa. It’s one of the things that will distinguish what you make from Mississippi salsa.
One Margarita, Two Margaritas
Among the various songs floating out there about margaritas, I’ll stick to the relatively wholesome Luke Bryan tune One Margarita:
Everybody here ain’t from here
But we’re here doin’ our thing
Lettin’ go a little, little by little
Sippin’ on a frozen drinkOne margarita, two margarita, three margarita, shot
Don’t worry ’bout tomorrow
Leave all your sorrow out here on the floatin’ dock
I don’t know how authentic our recipe is for margaritas, but it comes courtesy of my father-in-law in Texas and it’s legitimately good and really simple.
Step 1: Do not buy margarita mix. It’s syrupy, too sweet, and overpowering. Instead, buy frozen limeade concentrate and real limes for your lime profile. You’ll thank me.
- 12 Ounce Can of Frozen Limeade Concentrate
- 8 Ounces of the Tequila of Your Choice
- 6 Ounces of Triple Sec
- 6 Ounces of Water
- 2 Ounces of Grand Marnier
- Fresh Lime Juice
- Ice
Pour of all your liquids into the blender. Squeeze the juice of 2-3 limes in for good measure. Fill it with ice. Blend. Salt a glass, pour your frozen goodness, plop in a wedge of lime, and drink. Cheers!
The post On the Menu: Carne Asada & Margaritas appeared first on Magnolia Tribune.
…
By: Russ Latino
Title: On the Menu: Carne Asada & Margaritas
Sourced From: magnoliatribune.com/2023/06/23/on-the-menu-carne-asada-margaritas/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=on-the-menu-carne-asada-margaritas
Published Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2023 11:40:08 +0000
Magnolia Tribune
Staring mortality in the face at Christmas
My friend Jarrod is dying after an eight year battle with cancer. He’s lived a life worth celebrating, one that has drawn people to Christ.
I was going about my business this week when I received a text that stopped me in my tracks. A college friend was being moved to hospice care.
Jarrod Egley was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in early 2017. In the fall of 2018, tests revealed the cancer had spread to his lungs and Jarrod’s cancer was classified as Stage IV.
For almost eight years from the date of the original diagnosis, he’s fought. Through surgeries, radiation, endless rounds and cycles of chemotherapy, and experimental immunotherapies, he’s fought.
Last year, I flew out to California and spent some time with Jarrod and his wife, Emily. We sat outside one night. He acknowledged to me that it was not a question of ‘if’, but ‘when’ the cancer would claim his life. I told him I was sorry, because what else is there to say?
We talked about our faith, about the trials of Job, about Jacob wrestling with God, about Paul’s affliction. But mostly we reflected on our time together in school, on the good things, and the mundane things, that happened since.
Jarrod and I met at Tulane University. One Sunday morning in the Spring of my freshman year, I rose from my dorm room bed, dressed, and began walking down Saint Charles Avenue in New Orleans with no particular agenda. I walked until I came across First Baptist Church and the thought flickered in the vacuous recesses of my brain to enter.
Some would say it was a lark. The Calvinist in me says providence. The walk that morning changed the trajectory of my time at Tulane and my life on the whole. Intervarsity Christian Fellowship and the Baptist Collegiate Ministry became central to my life and put me in regular league with Jarrod. I met him first at the BCM and we ultimately ended up attending church together.
Jarrod was a faithful servant on and off campus. He helped organize a group of us that would weekly make our way down to the Esplanade seawall on the backside of the French Quarter to feed the homeless. On Friday nights, he could be found at chapel with a small cadre of students foregoing Bourbon Street for early 2000s worship music.
Jarrod was a loyal friend in those years. Never rude or biting. Not prone to an insult for an easy laugh. Persistently encouraging. An engineering student, his mind worked linearly and was oriented to problem solving. There were never a lot of wasted words — always a lot of deliberative questions when he disagreed or did not understand a point. He exhibited intelligence, empathy, and the kind of moral conviction that sets someone apart.
He also had a wry and dry sense of humor and a penchant for beating people at Madden football. He was fair-to-midland on the ultimate frisbee pitch. Along the way, there were crawfish boils, Mardi Gras outtings, poorly attended Tulane football games, and more than a decent amount of wing eating.
After college, I lost touch with Jarrod. He moved back to his home state of California. He got married to his college sweetheart, who could not have anticipated her husband’s journey, but has been a steady and constant helpmate throughout. Jarrod became a very successful engineer and a bourbon connoisseur. One of his bucket list trips took him to Kentucky, where he got to meet and became friends with bourbon “Hall of Famer” Freddie Johnson of Buffalo Trace acclaim.
Sitting in his backyard nearly 20 years after graduating from Tulane, I saw many of the same qualities I had grown to admire when we were students together. I saw a husband who doted on and supported Emily’s passions. But I also saw someone whose body had been beaten to hell and back, who was tired, and who, like Jacob, had been wrestling with God. We quickly fell back into friendship, which perhaps is the mark of good friendship.
We all have aspirations in our youth — for the kind of spouse or parent we might be, for what we might accomplish, for what we might experience. Along the way, dreams are satisfied, modified, or they die on the vine. The clock inevitably works against all of us. That night in Oceanside, California, Jarrod, a numbers guy, saw that time was not on his side. He believed, as we all would, that he still had more to give, more impact to be made, and more things to see and experience.
After that trip, Jarrod and I stayed in touch, most frequently triggered by news of his cancer. It has been mostly the bad variety in recent months. Now spread throughout his body, down to his bones, he has lived in constant pain for months. Not even a steady diet of morphine and an implanted pain pump solve for it. Jarrod’s been hospitalized twelve times just in 2023.
But his matter of fact sense of humor and way of seeing the world remains in tact. So too does his faith that despite these trials, he has always been safe in the hands of Christ.
There are people in the world who believe that life is random, disordered, and without reason. I am not among them. I think my friend is staring mortality in the face at Christmas for a reason.
For thousands of years before Christ came, there was darkness and despair. Sin and shame gripped the hearts of men. Until one holy night, God, in His infinite love, mercy and wisdom, sent His son to save. Jesus is the light of the world and the hope of man. He has won victory over death and Jarrod’s will not be the exception. Jesus came for Jarrod, and for you.
For thousands of years since Jesus’s death, burial, and resurrection, His disciples have been used as divine instruments to point the way to God. Jarrod is among them. If life expectancies were the measure, Jarrod would be at the midway point for most people. He’s made a lifetime of impact for the Kingdom and on other people.
So, to my friend Jarrod, you were placed here with a purpose. You have run your race. You are loved. And when this chapter closes, you will hear “well done, my good and faithful servant.” There is no greater evidence of a life well lived.
While Jarrod and Emily have been fortunate to have health insurance, their portion of the medical bills so far in 2023 have eclipsed $30,000, and Emily is facing additional uncovered expenses during Jarrod’s hospice care, including a night nurse that costs over $400 a night. If you would like to help defray the cost, a contribution can be made at their Go Fund Me page.
The post Staring mortality in the face at Christmas appeared first on Magnolia Tribune.
…
By: Russ Latino
Title: Staring mortality in the face at Christmas
Sourced From: magnoliatribune.com/2023/12/16/staring-mortality-in-the-face-at-christmas/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=staring-mortality-in-the-face-at-christmas
Published Date: Sat, 16 Dec 2023 15:05:22 +0000
Did you miss our previous article…
https://www.biloxinewsevents.com/magnolia-mornings-december-15-2023/
Magnolia Tribune
Magnolia Mornings: December 15, 2023
Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
1. Laurin St. Pe’ named CEO of Singing River Health System
The Board of Trustees of Singing River Health System announced the immediate appointment of Laurin St. Pe’ as the Chief Executive Officer on Thursday.
“We are thrilled to announce Laurin St. Pe as the new CEO of Singing River,” said Steve Ates, Board President in a statement. “His wealth of healthcare experience and proven track record make him the ideal leader to steer our health system toward its next phase of growth and success.”
St. Pe’, who has been serving as Interim CEO since July 2023, said he is honored to assume the role of CEO at Singing River. He has worked at Singing River as Administrator of Singing River Health System’s Pascagoula Hospital and Gulfport Hospital, in addition to overseeing program service lines throughout the entire system to his subsequent appointment as Chief Operating Officer of Singing River.
The health system says St. Pe played a crucial role in the financial revitalization of Singing River Health System while steering the organization toward financial stability.
2. Gulfport-Biloxi airport, Stennis evacuated after threats
The Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport was evacuated on Thursday morning “out of an abundance of caution,” airport officials said, after receiving an emailed threat to certain transportation entities across the state.
The airport was thoroughly security swept, cleared and reopened in just over two hours. Gulfport-Biloxi is now operating regularly.
The threat was also sent to Stennis International Airport. Their staff and personnel were also evacuated until the facilities could be swept and cleared.
Any passenger whose travel was affected by the evacuation is encouraged to contact their respective air carrier.
3. Cassidy arrested in Iowa for beheading Satanic Temple statue
Former Mississippi congressional and legislative candidate Michael Cassidy was arrested this week in Iowa for beheading a statue at the state’s Capitol erected by The Satanic Temple.
Cassidy reportedly decapitated the statue and turned himself to police on Thursday. He was charged with fourth degree criminal mischief. He then started an online legal defense fund where he’s raised upwards of $20,000 as of Thursday night, according to his X account.
4. “Serial fraudster” ordered to cease offering investments into companies
According to the Mississippi Secretary of State’s office, on October 26, 2023, Secretary Michael Watson and the Securities Division issued an order against Stephone N. Patton. The SOS says Patton is a serial fraudster with multiple criminal convictions in Mississippi and Florida.
Through business filings with the SEC and Mississippi, Patton has held himself to be the CEO of various companies, including Star Oil and Gas Company, Inc., North Gulf Energy Corporation, Inc., Patton Oilfield Services, Inc., and Patton Farms, LLC.
The SOS says using these business filings and company websites, Patton claimed to have raised hundreds of billions of dollars through investment opportunities. Through investigative efforts and collaboration with the SEC, the SOS discovered none of Patton’s companies are operational, have any assets, or generate any revenues. Account records show Patton spent investors’ funds almost as soon as he received them on personal expenses. The total amount of known investments made to Patton’s fraudulent companies is over $80,000. Further, none of Patton’s investment offerings have been registered or notice filed with the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office.
The SOS order requires Patton to cease and desist from offering investments with his companies, requiring Patton to permanently deactivate his companies’ websites to prevent any further dissemination of his false or misleading information. Patton is also ordered to pay an administrative penalty of $25,000 to the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office for these violations, in addition to restitution owed to all his Mississippi investors.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Congressional retirements mounting as 2024 election cycle nears
Retirement and departure announcements are piling up ahead of the start to the 2024 election cycle. The New York Times has developed a Retirement Tracker that currently shows 22 Democrats and 11 Republicans who are in Congress now will not be seeking re-election next year.
“Dozens of members of Congress have announced plans to leave their seats in the House of Representatives, setting a rapid pace for congressional departures, with more expected as the 2024 election draws closer,” the NY Times reports. “Given Republicans’ razor-thin House majority, the wave of exits has the potential to lead to a significant shake-up next year.”
You can find the tracker here.
2. Texas, Daily Wire, The Federalist sue U.S. State Department over media censorship
The U.S. State Department’s Global Engagement Center has come under fire as Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton along with The Daily Wire and The Federalist have filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the department funded technology that could “render disfavored press outlets unprofitable.” They claim that the department has helped social media – Facebook, YouTube and X (formerly Twitter) – to censor free speech while funding technologies used to censor right-leaning news outlets such as theirs.
New Civil Liberties Alliance is representing The Daily Wire and The Federalist. Paxton and the outlets claim the Global Disinformation Index (GDI), a British think tank, received a $100,000 grant from the State Department in 2021, and NewsGuard, which rates the “misinformation” levels of news outlets, received $25,000 from the State Department in 2020, according to the lawsuit.
According to the State Department’s website, the Global Engagement Center’s mission is to direct, lead, synchronize, integrate, and coordinate U.S. Federal Government efforts to recognize, understand, expose, and counter foreign state and non-state propaganda and disinformation efforts aimed at undermining or influencing the policies, security, or stability of the United States, its allies, and partner nations.
As reported by Reuters, the lawsuit cited a GDI-produced list from December 2022 that ranked The Daily Wire and The Federalist as among the 10 “riskiest sites” for news while the least-risky included The New York Times, Associated Press and NPR. Reuters notes that the lawsuit alleges such “blacklists” are reducing revenues to The Daily Wire and The Federalist along with their visibility on social media and ranking results from browser searches.
Sports & Entertainment
1. SEC releases 2024 schedules
Wednesday evening, the Southeastern Conference released the 2024 football schedules for its member schools, including of interest in the Magnolia State the schedules for Ole Miss and Mississippi State.
It is the first schedule that includes new conference members University of Oklahoma and University of Texas, bringing the conference to 16 schools. Each SEC team will play eight conference football games plus at least one required opponent from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac 12 or major independent, each team will have two open dates.
The 2024 season will be the first year the SEC will play a schedule without divisional competition since 1991. The top two teams in the league standings based on winning percentage will play in the 33rd SEC Football Championship Game in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Saturday, December 7.
2. White, Jesiolowski, Jones honored by MAIS
The Midsouth Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) in Mississippi, comprised of non-public schools, announced this week that Madison-Ridgeland Academy’s senior quarterback John White was named the 6A Player of the Year while Hartfield’s Reed Jesiolowski and Hartfield Chris Jones were named the MAIS 6A Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively.
All three have committed to play college football at the University of Mississippi.
White is Mississippi’s all-time leader in career passing yards with 15,259 yards, a record he broke during the 2023 season.
MAIS, like the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) for public schools, is broken down into classifications, from 1A to 6A. However, MHSAA added a 7A this season.
Markets & Business
1. Consumer retail sales up as energy, gas prices move down
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this week that the Consumer Price Index rose 0.1% in November after being unchanged in October. Retail sales rose 0.3% in November after rising 0.2% in October, meaning consumers continue to spend at the start of the holiday season.
The CPI or inflation rate is 3.1%, higher than the Federal Reserve target of 2% but below the 9% peak in 2022 which reached a 40-year high.
As for the energy index, BLS reported that it fell 2.3% in November after decreasing 2.5% in October. The gasoline index decreased 6% in November, following a 5% decrease in the previous month.
The index for fuel oil fell in November, decreasing 2.7%. However, the natural gas index rose 2.8% over the month after rising 1.2% the previous month. The index for electricity also rose 1.4% in November, after increasing 0.3% in October.
The energy index fell 5.4% over the past 12 months. The gasoline index decreased 8.9%, the natural gas index declined 10.4%, and the fuel oil index fell 24.8% over this 12-month span.
2. Week’s market rally continues into Friday
At close of trading on Thursday, the U.S. markets continued the week’s rally, pushing the Dow up 158 points to 37,248 while the Nasdaq and S&P also made gains, 27 points and 12 points, respectively, to close at 14,761 and 4,719.
The record high for the Dow on Thursday moved futures up 102 points.
According to CNBC, the major averages are headed for their seventh straight positive week. As of Thursday, the Dow is higher on the week by 2.8%. The S&P 500 is up by 2.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 2.5% this week.
Stocks rallied after the Federal Reserve left rates unchanged this week while members look towards cuts in the new year and beyond.
The post Magnolia Mornings: December 15, 2023 appeared first on Magnolia Tribune.
…
By: Magnolia Tribune
Title: Magnolia Mornings: December 15, 2023
Sourced From: magnoliatribune.com/2023/12/15/magnolia-mornings-december-15-2023/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=magnolia-mornings-december-15-2023
Published Date: Fri, 15 Dec 2023 13:00:00 +0000
Magnolia Tribune
New water rates expected in Jackson come 2024; those who don’t pay face shut off
Interim Third-Party Director Ted Henifin said this week that only about 59% of the City of Jackson’s water customers are paying their bills.
JXN Water has announced new rates and fees coming in 2024. Those who are not paying will be at risk of shut offs.
The company, which was established by federal appointed interim Third-Party Director Ted Henifin, has been overseeing the city’s water system for the better part of a year.
Officials estimated that the average cost for water in the city was $76 per month for residents. Henifin clarified that JXN water will not attempt to recoup any charges prior to November 29, 2022, and will work with those who have failed to pay since that time.
He said only about 59 percent of the city’s water customers are paying their bills.
“You can’t forgive bills, so we have to be creative in how we part that,” said Henifin in reference to Mississippi’s laws that prevent giving away water.
According to a release by JXN Water announcing the rate changes, residents in single family households with small meters that use up to 748 gallons daily would see a bill increase of roughly .30 cents per day. Research indicates that the average U.S. family uses 300 gallons per day.
SNAP customers will have a new rate tier that could lower their bill by up to .69 cents per day, on average.
“Those who need to save the most benefit from saving money by drinking tap water. This new rate structure makes water affordability possible for 12,500 JXN Water customers who receive SNAP benefits,” said Henifin in the release.
Read more about the anticipated rate changes here.
New fees will also be implemented, including a new service fee of $50, service deposit of $100, returned check fee of $25, service restoration fee of $100, and meter tampering charge of $500.
JXN Water has continued to encourage residents to use the water, with Henifin going on the record in a federal status hearing saying that the water “was safe to drink.”
More conversation regarding the billing process is expected to come at next week’s Jackson City Council meeting.
The post New water rates expected in Jackson come 2024; those who don’t pay face shut off appeared first on Magnolia Tribune.
…
By: Sarah Ulmer
Title: New water rates expected in Jackson come 2024; those who don’t pay face shut off
Sourced From: magnoliatribune.com/2023/12/15/new-water-rates-expected-in-jackson-come-2024-those-who-dont-pay-face-shut-off/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=new-water-rates-expected-in-jackson-come-2024-those-who-dont-pay-face-shut-off
Published Date: Fri, 15 Dec 2023 20:00:00 +0000
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